in 2008 he referred to israel's u.s. supporters as the jewish lobby, drawing concern from senators in both parties. iran is still another flash point. as a senator, hagel voted against trade sanctions and more recently has criticized talk of a military strike on iran's nuclear site. the president today defended hagel's maverick refutation going back to when they served together in the senate. >> i came to admire his courage and his judgment, his willingness to speak his mind even if it wasn't popular. en if it defed the conventional wisdom. that's exactly the spirit i want on my national security team. the recognition that when it comes to the defense of our country we are not democrats or republicans, we are americans. >> woodruff: the president is also close to john brennan who has been counterterror advisor since 2009 and was instrumental in planning the operation to capture osama bin laden. >> a 25-year veteran of the c.i.a., john knows what our national security demands. intelligence that provides policy makers with